New shotgun needed

Status
Not open for further replies.

jmuv

Member
Joined
Jun 13, 2021
Messages
57
Well the time has come that I put up my 12 gauge gun and down size to a 20. I mostly waterfowl hunt and I am a lefty. I have neck problems and the surgeon suggested that it might be better to limit the recoil I subject myself to if I want to avoid surgery. I know that gas guns are softer recoiling but they are not many to be found. I have found a sbe 3 in left hand but before I spend my whole social security check on a shotgun I would like to get some idea of what to expect. How would the recoil be compared with 3” duck loads in the sbe 20 to say a 2 3/4 in my bps 12?
Are there any other left hand 20 gauge guns I should be looking at before I buy?
 
I can't give you any suggestions on a gun but this coming from a guy who just had 3 vertebrae fused in his neck. Get a limb saver and have it installed on your gun. They really are a big help and yes it was on a twenty gauge semi auto.
 
Buddy is a leftie, and has the same issues....I will be watching this thread.

I get that it can suck, but once and a while it helps. Was in a gun shop a few months ago and came across a very nice bolt rifle for an amazing price....hay can I see that, are you a leftie....oh shoot I did not even notice that.....yea we have had to mark it down 3 times already as it will just not move....called my buddy and he came out and bought the rifle for under the hang tag price....he got an amazing deal.
 
I don’t have a problem shooting right hand guns but the other guys in the blind might. For years I have shot a bps and solved that spent shell ejection issues by taking the left side of the blind. Now that the bps recoil is not acceptable or maybe even safe I was trying to get some input on a soft shooting 20 gauge left hand shotgun. I kinda would like a semi automatic and have been told that gas guns even though they have to be clean to function properly are softer shooting that inertia guns. True or not?
 
By the time you start shooting 20 ga loads that will kill waterfowl, from a gun 1-2 lbs lighter you'll get more recoil than a 12.

Your BPS is already one of the heavier guns. Limit yourself to 2 3/4" steel shot loads and you should be better off. The primary advantage of a 20 over a 12 isn't recoil reduction, but a lighter gun to carry in the field.
 
Not a 20 ga but this is a very soft recoiling 12 ga in LH.

Combine it with the Kick Off recoil reduction system and it is a very soft shooting gun.

https://www.beretta.com/en/a400-xtreme-left-handed/

There are some 20 ga shotguns built on 12 ga receivers. They are probably very hard to find nowadays and most likely do not come in LH. Those would be the only recoil advantage to going to a 20.
 
have been told that gas guns even though they have to be clean to function properly are softer shooting that inertia guns. True or not?

In my experience, true, gas has less felt recoil then the Browning A5 12 ga i shot.

Remington 11/87 , 1100 & an old Winchester gas gun, is what i compared recoil too.

I now use this to soak up some recoil. What ever it takes to keep shooting.
20220610_121651.jpg
 
Last edited:
Lighter weight in a 20 ga, is not the way to go.

Go heavy 12 ga.. Adjust 12 ga load to 20 ga levels.

Barrel porting, great recoil pads, all help to reduce felt recoil.
I agree with all of this except I don’t believe porting does any tangible good. In addition it increases muzzle blast, the effect of which would be compounded in a blind. I’ve had three shoulder surgeries and am recoil sensitive so I tend to use heavy gas guns. IMO a heavy gas semi 12 shooting lighter loads is the way to go. Slower velocity shells mitigate recoil as much as lighter loads but with steel shot high velocity is needed.

Beretta and TriStar sell left handed gas semi autos off the top of my head. There are also hydraulic recoil reducers which can get pricy.
 
Last edited:
I would stick with a 12 for waterfowling. 20 Ga kicks less is old news. Modern loadings have made this axiom obsolete. The average 12 load kicks more, but if you shop selectively, there are low-recoil 12 options that will shoot as soft as any 20 Ga offering. This will universally mean non-toxics for hunting given similar performance standards. Forget steel shot. Modern steel loads use velocity to achieve killing power. Yes, modern 12 Ga steel loads at 1500 +/- fps are stout. Modern tungsten and bismuth based 2 3/4 loads in the lighter payload and velocity ranges kill ducks like the old standard 1 1/4 oz of #4 lead and shoot like 20 Ga standard field loads.
 
Would the OP consider reloading? (w/ a MEC 600JR in mind)
If so, the OP can load that 2-3/4" 12ga down to 20ga range in a heartbeat
... for a fraction of the cost of a new shotgun.

(currently shooting skeet using 3/4oz in my 12ga Beretta O/U -- very pleasant.)




... and yes, primers and powders are now coming back on-line


.
 
Last edited:
I have a Beretta Silver Pigeon in 12 gauge. In Jan I had spine surgery, and found out last week I have arthritis in my right shooting shoulder. I bought a Beretta Silver Pigeon 20 gauge a couple of months ago, and I thought it was too light. So I added about 8 ounces in the butt stock hole, and a Graco 4 ounce weight clamped to the barrel . The weight went from 6 pounds 8 ounces to 7 pounds 6 ounces. The weight difference between the weight I added and the final weight was due to the clamp holding the 4 ounce weight. I load 3/4 ounce loads and have a recoil pad in my vest. So I have a 20 gauge that weighs as much as most 12 gauges. When I go pheasant and grouse hunting in Wisconsin this fall, I will take off the weights. I use the 20 gauge for Sporting Clays, and after 75 shots, no harm done to my shoulder.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top